Reports of Cain's Demise Premature

It strikes me that the potential years-long battle for the title of ace will be a fun sub-plot for this franchise. On a day where the wondrous Tim Lincecum was featured in Sports Illustrated and Jon Sanchez was named NL Player of the Week, Matt Cain reminded us why he was once the lone young stud in the Giants rotation.

In what was easily his best start of the year, Cain shut down the league-leading Cubs offense (albeit without Aramis Ramirez), hurling 8 innings of 2 hit ball while racking up 10 Ks.  And, in a shocking twist, he gets the win in a 2-1 triumph by the Giants.

Jose Castillo closed out Cain's night with perhaps the best defensive play of the year (after two ugly errors in two days).  Buy MLB.TV, watch Baseball Tonight, or find a time machine and go back in time to watch his snag of a Mark DeRosa grounder - a full extension pick to his left on a high bounce, an immediate pop up to the point of no balance, and a wing and a prayer one hopper to John Bowker.

Mere amateur blogger prose could not accurately describe the poetry of that play.  Cain was shaking his head in disbelief as he walked off the field.

Brian Wilson gives up a run in a terribly sloppy save.  The 100 MPH fastballs were fun, but I'll take 95 with location and a couple of less ulcers.

Alfonzo Back, Holm Down: Evidently, Eliezer Alfonzo's PED-ban did nothing to diminish his stature among the higher-ups, as he gets called up nine days after his reinstatement to replace Steve Holm.

Love the Holm, but his defense has left something to be desired, and it will be nice to have Alfonzo's ML experience, both in calling games and with the bat, behind Big Money.  Still, I'll miss the improbable winner of the Giants backup spot out of spring training.

Happy trails, Steve.

Comment-Starter: Who do you see having the most successful career as a Giant - Cain, Lincecum or Sanchez?

Let's Go Dirty!

Sanchez on the hill as the good guys try to take the rubber match in the day game.

In other news, Eliezer Alfonzo - the other, less disappointing but still underwhelming "E. Alfonzo" - has tested positive for a banned substance and will be suspended for 50 games, leaving the Grizz thin at backstop.

I think someone forgot to tell him that you actually need to work out for the 'roids to really be effective.

What to do with Barry Zit0-6

Amid Bruce Bochy's strong insinuation after yesterday's abomination of a start that Barry Zito may be out of the rotation and off to the bullpen, DL, or somewhere else, the local press hits come rolling in.

(Photo courtesy The Snitch)

Rick Hurd of the Contra Costa Times believes it's all about confidence, pointing to Zito's shockingly recent excellence in the 2006 ALDS:

Trouble is when it goes missing, because it takes more than devouring videotape for mechanical flaws to get it back. Zito's lack of velocity and inability to command the zone may be killing him -- his eight-pitch leadoff walk to Jerry Hairston Jr. set the tone for a six-run, 39-pitch first inning -- but when Zito speaks of "not being aggressive, not attacking the strike zone, and not pitching to contact," it's worth wondering if his troubles may be originating elsewhere.

It would make sense, because self-confidence and success go together like the chicken and the egg, and right now, the wolf has invaded and eaten both.

"Obviously, it's not great," Zito said of his confidence. "But it's not bad, either. I know what I've done, and what I can do."

Lowell Cohen of the Press-Democrat has a good "Behind the Music" report of the clubhouse following yesterday's game:

It happened in the clubhouse after Zito had failed again - eight runs in three innings, an unacceptable start. Zito was getting ready to speak with the media. He didn't have to speak. He had been yanked from the game hours before and he could have gone home and no one would have blamed him. But he waited to answer all the tough questions because he sees that as part of his job. A public-relations man stopped him, said the manager wanted him.

Zito apologized to the writers and walked down the long hallway to the manager's office and walked in and shut the heavy door. Bochy told him the Giants are thinking of making a change with him, the pitcher with the third-largest total contract in baseball. Options include skipping a start, putting him in the bullpen or letting him take his next turn as usual.

Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News points to concerns, voiced by the ominous "Giants officials" about his mechanics and a possible too many chefs problem:

There was little new in Zito's analysis. He faulted himself for not being aggressive enough, but said he hasn't "delved into the intricacies" of why he has failed to do so.

Zito has consulted many pitching gurus throughout his life and Giants officials have felt at times that the left-hander had too many people whispering in his ear - especially when he arrived in spring camp last year with a totally new delivery that was soon scrapped.

But Zito said he is working only with Bochy, pitching coach Dave Righetti and bullpen coach Mark Gardner.

"I'm not going out there knocking down anyone's door looking for solutions," Zito said. "The solution is inside me and it's up to me to turn it around. Nobody can tell me a magic key that's going to turn it. It's me and my own will and my strength."

And crazy Uncle Scott Ostler believes it's something, ahem, supernatural?

It's hard to pinpoint what's wrong with Zito, but the answer could be as simple as: location, location, location.

Not the location of Zito's pitches, although that's a huge worry. The bigger problem might be the location of Zito's locker.

The row of four locker stalls along the north wall of the clubhouse, once the kingdom of Bonds, has become Kreepy Korner.

The other resident of the Korner is Matt Cain, who is 0-2.

Zito and Cain, the Giants' Nos. 1 and 2 pitchers, have started 11 games and have a combined 0-8 record.

Actually, got to give Ostler some props there - he's got a point.

Dare we utter the unfathomable, though? That perhaps, belying his sweet demeanor and leadership role, that there's something else going on with Zito? There haven't been too many cases where a pitcher suddenly loses MPHs off his fastball at the age of 29.

Personally, I don't believe that Zito messed with PEDs, but it's only a matter of time before someone does voice that concern, media personality or otherwise. This contract is gathering steam in the national media as one of the worst ever, and speculation about the whereabouts of Zito's fastball will only escalate.

Unfortunately, it seems that the trials and tribulations of one Barry that seemed to drag down this team have been replaced by the trials and tribulations of another. Will this have a similar effect the team? And what do you think is up with Zit0-6?

Five Things

Being a recent East Coast transplant, my love of the Giants is treated by quizzical looks. Looks that scream "why would you follow THAT team? They don't win, they're poorly managed, and they don't even have their own network!"

Of course, these people don't quite understand the nuanced approach associated with rooting for your home team blindly, regardless of their highs and lows, and prefer to follow the closest team with a recent World Series title, if not the cleverest marketing strategy.

That being said, an associate has requested a primer on Los Gigantes in advance of possibly advancing them as his primary NL team. So, I present to him, in an open letter on OBnB:

"Five Things You Need to Know About the San Francisco Giants"

1. Remember entitlement? Fuhgeddaboutit.

Many teams win World Series. One every year, in fact. Contrary to popular opinion among Giants fans, many fans of other teams remember their last World Series victory. The oft-repeated sentiment of fans of teams that aren't very good is "well, one of these days they'll recreate that magic they had that glorious season." They may be an Angels fan, or a Royals fan, perhaps an Orioles fan.

As a San Francisco Giants fan, that glimmer of hope doesn't exist. We don't feel entitled because, well, you need to feel like things go well for you, sometimes, to be entitled. When things are going well, you need to replace your feelings of cocksureness with those of impending nausea and possible diarrhea. Things don't go well for the San Francisco Giants - it's an objective historical fact.

This run of failure is not an anomaly since the last great achievement. This is the norm.

(Note to Cubs fans: Losing is kinda your thing - it actually makes you who you are. I mean, at least your team gets the "loveable loser" tag. We're kind of the loser that no one really likes, the one who hangs out under the bleachers, biding his time before the next crop of girls come by playing his own derivation of solitaire with Magic cards.)

2. Peter Magowan DID NOT save the San Francisco Giants

Peter Magowan is portrayed by national media types (national including the Bay Area sports media, which is largely unimpressive) as the grocer mogul/Brooks Brothers "senior gentleman" model who stopped the team from moving to Tampa Bay by making a last minute push to acquire the team and keep them in San Francisco.

That's not what happened. Owners blocked the move, led by those from the Dodgers and the Padres as to not threaten regional rivalries and overtax players with multiple cross-country odysseys for interdivision play every year. When the owners vetoed the deal, Magowan and Co. got the team at a discounted rate like a fat guy at an after Thanksgiving turkey sale.

3. Brian Sabean is wrong

He just is.

See: Zito, Barry; Pierzynski, A.J.; Perez, Neifi; Tucker, Michael/1st Round Pick

4. Barry Bonds is not evil, he's just the bestest steroid user ever

Villify him as long as you recognize that, fundamentally, he's no different than Rick Ankiel, Mark McGwire, Andy Pettite, and any host of busted users.

And shut up with your asterisk - you don't think just as many pitchers were juicing?

We're not proud of it just like the rest of fans are not proud of the era. Guess we'll live with it just the way we did with segregated baseball, rampant amphetamine use, and players gambling on their own games.

5. Embrace the anger

This team will make you angry. It's an organizational philosophy, from top to bottom, to mismanage, mangle, and in all other ways snatch failure from the jaws of success at all possible points. We're talking ownership, personnel decisions, gameday management, players, minors, the whole goddamned ship.

If you care, this will make you angry. Learn to channel that as it can be a powerful force. Last year, I got so angry after a terrible loss, I crocheted a replica of the roof of the Sistine Chapel - in one night, WITHOUT the aid of crack.

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If I think of more, I'll post them. In the meantime, what does the average OBnB reader think? What advice would you give to an aspiring Giants fan? Leave a comment.